Glocally Newark

Bella Walczak brings a lot of energy to bartending!

So there I was, hard at work, drinking margaritas at 1 PM on a Tuesday afternoon.

Actually, it was all in the name of research (really). I’d been wanting to try out Brick City Bar & Grill, which is just a puck’s throw from the Prudential Center–literally in the Rock’s shadow at 35 Edison. Brick City is a cut above your pre-game beer and burger joint. A big cut above. The interior is lovely, with waterfalls in the dining room and in the ladies room (I’m guessing the men’s room too), hard wood floors and a marble topped bar. High definition televisions line the walls – five in the bar and eleven in the large but cozy dining room – but somehow do not diminish the high-end look of the place or distract from the delicious food.

Brick City Bar & Grill occupies the first 2 floors of the newly renovated Isley Building at 35 Edison.

Veggie spring rolls may be habit-forming.

I’m appalled to say that I have not given a Newark eatery a bad review yet. I’d really like to get all sassy and snarky and clever with the put-downs. But once again, my plot has been foiled! The veggie spring rolls and potato skins that I ordered at the bar were fresh and flavorful, on a different level altogether than usual appetizer fare and right in step with culinary trends. The rolls benefitted from the addition of spicy shriracha sauce; the potato skins were neither oily or mushy, but firm and tasty with sour cream and salsa sides.

My new friend at the bar, Al, reported that his chicken Caesar salad was “very, very good.” Al works at the Gateway Center as a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch. He said that the opening of Brick City was a real boon to the neighborhood. “Before your choices were Spanish or Portuguese, which are great. But it’s nice to have more choices.” At 1:30 PM there were nine people eating at the bar (including me and Al), and the dining room was still more than half full. The diners were the best dressed people in downtown Newark. Definitely a suit and tie crowd.

Co-owner Brian Karwoski (the other owner is brother-in-law Izzy Sema) confirmed that Brick City has many potential audiences to draw from. “We did our due diligence on this location for four months before signing,” he said. So, even without the massive influx of business that comes in on event nights at the Rock, Brick City can survive day-to-day relying on walk-in business from office workers and residents. Along with lunch, happy hour is a huge attraction, running Monday through Friday nights from 4 – 7 PM (on non-event nights) and featuring half-priced beers and specialty drinks.

Sharp-dressed man: Co-owner Brian Karwoski.

Brick City is also fitting out the second floor with another bar and more tables – both to handle overflow on event nights at the Pru Center and also for booking their own events. And how was that margarita? I’m ranking it the best I’ve had yet in downtown Newark, thanks to bartender Bella Walczak. I look forward, however, to doing my due diligence and continuing to rank margaritas throughout town.

Ah, memories. . .

To see the full Brick City menu and sign up for their mailing list, visit

www.brickcitybarandgrill.com.